System and method for distributing messages

ABSTRACT

A system and a method for distributing messages from mobile users over a communication network in real time. In the preferred embodiment, mobile users would enter information in handwritten form on a touch-sensitive screen using a stylus. The handwritten messages would be converted into a graphics format and then transmitted (using a suitable protocol) to a computer server. The computer server would store the graphic files in a database and also transmit the graphic files to subscribers.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to the field ofdistributing messages over a communication network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Brokers who work on the floor of a modem stock or commodityexchange, such as the New York Stock Exchange, must have the ability tobe on their feet and communicate with other persons on the floor of theexchange. Among a floor broker's other duties, the floor broker has tobe able to memorialize transactions and provide quotations. Inparticular, it is often advantageous if a broker can provide a free-flowof information to a trading desk or persons who are located physicallyoff the exchange floor. However, the New York Stock Exchange and othermajor exchanges (including commodity exchanges) in accordance withFederal law prohibit a floor broker from directly communicating with anyperson off the floor. In addition, a nonmember cannot enter an orderdirectly with a broker on the floor of the exchange.

[0003] Instead, the floor broker must communicate with the trading boothon the floor of the exchange. The clerk in the trading booth is thenpermitted to speak with the trading desk. (This is commonly known as the“kiss-the-booth” rule.) The kiss the booth rule also works in thereverse direction . That is, if the trading desk wishes a market quotefrom a floor broker, the trading desk would telephone the clerk in boothwho would then ask the floor broker for the market quote.

[0004] There are several different methods by which the floor broker andthe clerk in the booth communicate.

[0005] In accordance with a first method, the floor broker wouldphysically go to the booth and give the clerk a slip of paper. In otherinstances, (depending on exchange rules) the clerk would enter onto thefloor to retrieve the slip of paper. In still other instances,messengers or runners would physically carry slips of paper between thefloor brokers and clerks in the booth.

[0006] In accordance with a second method, the floor broker wouldcommunicate with the clerk in the booth by using a portable telephone(such as a cellular telephone).

[0007] In accordance with a third method, the clerk in the booth wouldlisten to the activity on the floor of the exchange and would provideinformation to the trading desk based on what the clerk heard.

[0008] In accordance with a fourth method, the floor broker could conveyinformation to a clerk, verbally or otherwise. That clerk could thenmake hand signals to the clerk in the trading booth.

[0009] In accordance with a fifth method, the floor broker himself wouldcommunicate with the clerk in the booth by using hand signals. Avariation of this method is for a first clerk to receive the informationconveyed by the hand signals and then reconvey the information to thesecond clerk in the booth by again using hand signals.

[0010] In all the variations, information may be furnished at thebroker's initiative or at the trading desk's initiative. Traditionally,brokers would record information on slips of paper. The brokers wouldthen hand the slips of paper to clerks on the floor of the exchange whowould communicate the information in the slips of paper to the tradingdesk by telephone.

[0011] The traditional method described above suffers from variousinherent drawbacks. First, the clerk in the booth simply does not havethe time to engage in telephone conferences with more than a fewindividuals. Second, there may be substantial delays in transmittinginformation to the trading desk because the floor broker has to conveythe slips of paper to the clerk, and the clerk has to reconvey thisinformation to the trading desk. Third, the slips of paper are difficultto organize and are frequently lost. This may make it difficult toreconstruct quotes after the fact. This may lead to regulatory problemssince many exchanges require that market quotes be preserved as evidencethat market orders were executed at a reasonable price.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0012] A preferred embodiment of the present invention uses hand-heldcomputers with touch-sensitive screens. The information entered on thetouch-sensitive screens is converted to graphic files. The graphic filesare then transmitted to a computer server that is connected to the localarea network of the subscribing firm. Computers that are connected bythe local area network would display the handwritten information byusing conventional Web browser software.

[0013] The preferred embodiment is an improvement over the prior art bypermitting a mobile commercial actor, such as a broker, to transmit hiscustomary jottings with almost no additional effort to the trading deskor to any subscriber who has a connected computer terminal. The floorbroker can also receive requests from the trading desk with almost noadditional effort.

[0014] The preferred embodiment also eliminates the delay inherent inthe prior art of the broker giving slips of paper to the clerk and theclerk then conveying the information to the trading desk, In addition,the preferred embodiment establishes a system for organizing and storingin a database the information contained in the handwritten jottings.

[0015] The preferred embodiment permits quotations and other informationto be sent to many different subscribers simultaneously. The over-alleffect of the preferred embodiment is that it allows the trading desk orany subscriber who has a connected computer terminal to have access toinformation as if the individual who works at the trading desk werephysically present on the floor of the exchange. As an added benefit,the preferred embodiment permits the reduction in the clerks employed inthe floor booth.

[0016] In short, the preferred embodiment permits the rapiddissemination of information using electronic medium, yet at the sametime complying with applicable rules and regulations

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] The disclosure is made more readily understandable by referenceto the accompanying drawings in which:

[0018]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the various components of a preferredembodiment of the invention;

[0019]FIG. 2 is a diagram of the various software components of apreferred embodiment of the invention;

[0020]FIGS. 3A and 3B are screen shots of a Web browser used in apreferred embodiment of the invention;

[0021]FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the steps involved in a subscriber'slogging onto a preferred embodiment of the invention and obtaininginformation; and

[0022]FIG. 5 sets forth examples of handwritten jottings that may bedistributed by a preferred embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0023] Referring to FIG. 1, a floor broker uses wireless hand-heldcomputer 100. Hand-held computer 100 has a touch sensitive screen and astylus. The floor broker would use the stylus to make a notation suchas: $\begin{matrix}{61\quad \frac{1}{2}} & \frac{5}{8} \\{10\quad {ML}} & {20\quad {BS}}\end{matrix}$

[0024] This notation in the common parlance of the stock exchange meansthat the bid price for the particular stock is 61½ and that MerrillLynch is willing to buy 10,000 shares at that price and that the askingprice is 61 and Bear Steams is willing to sell 20,000 shares at thatprice. (Participants in the financial or commodity markets wouldunderstand these handwritten notations).

[0025] Naturally, the notation could deal with any sort of informationsuch as the price at which a security is expected to open, whichindividuals are in the trading crowd or any relevant information about asecurity.

[0026] The notation entered on the touch sensitive screen would beconverted by the central processing unit of the hand-held computer 100.Alternatively, the information could be entered with any device suitablefor data entry such as a keyboard or a device suitable for voicerecognition.

[0027] The broker, by pressing a send button would transmit the graphicsfile to wireless antenna 102 on the floor of the exchange usingconventional radio transmission technology. The data would then betransmitted over the exchange's local area network 106 to a router thatwould convey the data to the subscribing firm's computer server 112. Theinformation would also be displayed in exchange terminal 104, which islocated in the booth (in this manner, the “kiss the booth” rule issatisfied). In most cases, the data would first pass through firewall108 that stands between the exchange's local area network and theoutside world and firewall 110 that stands between the subscribingfirm's local area network and the outside world. In the preferredembodiment, the data is transferred from the exchange's local areanetwork to the subscribing firm's local area network using Simple MailTransfer Protocol. However, various different publicly available orproprietary protocols could be used instead of Simple Mail TransferProtocol.

[0028] The computer server 112 is the central unit for the processing ofthe graphic files that represent the handwritten jottings. Computerserver 112 is responsible for organizing, storing and distributing thehandwritten jottings. Each graphic file could have coded into it thetime that the handwritten jotting was created by the floor broker andthe security to which the handwritten jotting relates. It is well knownin the computer programming arts of techniques to insert information ina graphic file. In addition, the graphic file itself could be insertedas part of a data packet suitable for transmission over the Internet ora local area network of subscribing firm 116.

[0029] The handwritten jottings are distributed to a client terminal 114running a Web browser. The handwritten jottings could also be conveyedto a mobile client laptop 118 using a dialup connection on to wirehand-held computer 120, using antenna 122.

[0030] Computer server 112 would carry out several different softwareprocesses simultaneously. Referring to FIG. 2, the processes areidentified as the EAN Interface Process 204, the Market Look Manager206, and HTTP Web Server 208. (These names are only used for clarity ofthe explanation of the preferred embodiment; naturally, these processesare classified by their functionality.)

[0031] EAN Interface Process 204 upon startup would establish aconnection to the exchange network 200. EAN Interface Process 204 wouldmonitor the connection for failures and report disconnects or otherconnection trouble to a critical error log that is maintained in thestorage of computer server 112. EAN Interface Process 206 would performautomatic reconnection attempts when disconnects are detected. EANInterface Process 204 would maintain connection statistics such asnumber of connection attempts and number of messages sent and received.

[0032] Market Look Manager 206 is responsible for the overall managementand storage of information, user authentication and client profileinformation. The Market Look Manager 206 would perform client userauthentication. Market Look Manager 206 would also route messagesbetween EAN Interface Process 204 and HTTP Web Server 208. Market LookManager 206 would also communicate with database 202 in which thegraphic files representing the handwritten jottings and otherinformation is stored.

[0033] HTTP Web server 208, which runs in computer server 112, servesthe individual subscribers.

[0034] In the preferred embodiment, the individual subscriber wouldobtain access to the handwritten jotting by using a Web browser. FIG. 3Aand FIG. 3B are screenshots of the Web browser displaying thehandwritten jottings. In the preferred embodiment, HTTP Web Server 208transmits a JAVA applet to the client computer. Accordingly, manypopular web browser software such as INTERNET EXPLORER or NETSCAPENAVIGATOR could be used. However, the invention is not limited to use ofJAVA applets or the use of the Web browsers on the subscriberscomputers.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 4, a subscriber in step 400 would enter theuniform resource locator of the log-in Web page maintained by HTTP WebServer 208. In step 402, the subscriber would provide a user name andpassword. HTTP Web Server 208 recognizes the user name and password asvalid then the primary screen would be presented in step 404; otherwisein step 406 the subscriber would be notified that the log-in failed andwould be given a number of opportunities to complete the log-in.

[0036] The subscriber would then have a number of options. Thesubscriber could send a request for information to a floor broker or abooth. The subscriber could select the securities that the subscriberwished to monitor.

[0037] The subscriber could set the number of handwritten jottings thatare displayed at one time.

[0038] The subscriber could also set the software to Ticker mode, inwhich the subscriber could click on a scrolling ticker symbol and seethe handwritten jottings. The subscriber could also display a history ofhandwritten jottings over a predetermined period.

[0039] It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will beable to devise numerous arrangements which, although not explicitlyshown or described herein, embody the principles of the invention andare within its spirit and scope.

What is claimed:
 1. A system for distributing a handwritten message,including, an input device; a communication network to which said inputdevice has access; and a display device connected to said communicationnetwork for showing the handwritten message.
 2. A system fordistributing handwritten messages, including: a wireless hand-heldcomputer; an antenna adapted to receive electromagnetic radio waves fromthe wire-less hand-held computer; a communication network incommunication with the antenna; a first firewall; a second firewall; acomputer server that collects the messages; and a computer operativewith a Web browser.
 3. A method for distributing handwritten messages,including the steps of: entering the handwritten message on an inputdevice; converting the handwritten message to the format of a graphicsfile; transmitting said graphics file over a communications network;displaying said graphics on a display device connected to saidcommunications network.
 4. A system for distributing a spoken message,including: a first device for converting said spoken message into a dataobject; a communication network to which said first device has access;and a second device connected to said communication network that playssaid spoken message
 5. A system for distributing a spoken message,including: a first device for converting said spoken message into a dataobject; a communication network to which said first device has access; asecond device connected to said communication network for convertingsaid data object to text; and a display device connected to said seconddevice for displaying said spoken message
 6. A system for distributinginformation by a floor broker from the floor of regulated exchange,including: an input device accessible to said floor broker; a firstdevice in communication with said input device; a display device fordisplaying the information in a trading booth; a communication networkto which said first device has access; a first firewall; a secondfirewall; a computer server that collects the messages; and a computeroperative with a Web browser.
 7. A system for distributing informationto and from floor brokers on a regulated exchange floor, including: aninput device for inputting data into a data object; a firstcommunication network to which said input device is connected; a displaydevice located in a booth for displaying said data object; a computerserver connected to said first communication network; a data baselocated on said computer server for storing said data object; a secondcommunication network to which said computer server is connected; and aplurality of terminals connected to said second communication network.8. A method for distributing messages, said method including the stepsof: providing an input device; providing a communication network towhich said input device has access; and providing a display deviceconnected to said communication network for showing the handwrittenmessage.
 9. A method for distributing messages, said method includingthe steps of: providing a wireless hand-held computer; providing anantenna adapted to receive electromagnetic radio waves from thewire-less hand-held computer; providing a communication network incommunication with the antenna; providing a first firewall; providing asecond firewall; providing a computer server that collects the messages;and providing a computer operative with a Web browser.
 10. A method fordistributing a spoken message said method including the steps of:providing a first device for converting said spoken message into a dataobject; providing a communication network to which said first device hasaccess; and providing a second device connected to said communicationnetwork that plays said spoken message
 11. A method for distributing aspoken message, said method including the steps of: providing a firstdevice for converting said spoken message into a data object; providinga communication network to which said first device has access; providinga second device connected to said communication network for convertingsaid data object to text; and providing a display device connected tosaid second device for displaying said spoken message
 12. A method fordistributing messages, said method including the steps of: providing aninput device accessible to said broker; providing a first device incommunication with said input device; providing a display device fordisplaying the information in a booth; providing a communication networkto which said first device has access; providing a first firewall;providing a second firewall; providing a computer server that collectsthe messages; and providing a computer operative with a Web browser. 13.A method for distributing messages, said method including the steps of:providing an input device for inputting data into a data object;providing a first communication network to which said input device isconnected; providing a display device located in a booth for displayingsaid data object; providing a computer server connected to said firstcommunication network; providing a data base located on said computerserver for storing said data object; providing a second communicationnetwork to which said computer server is connected; and providing aplurality of terminals connected to said second communication network.